The Indian Premier League (IPL) is not just a cash rich league that everyone wants to play for, but it is also a great platform for youngsters to showcase their talent to the world and make a claim for a spot in the Indian team with consistent performance.
The IPL 2021 was no different. Infact, it was a very unique season. The season kicked-off in India but was suspended midway due to COVID scare throughout various teams. As a result of that, the 2nd half was resumed in September and was played in the United Arab Emirates.
The edition saw some new faces emerge through. It was the year of T20 World Cup as well and was played in UAE too. As a result of that, the Indian selectors picked a team consisting more of the players who performed well in the IPL 2021 than regular, especially those players who had an outstanding season.
But, those players have really failed to live-up to what they displayed in IPL 2021 and some have been even dropped from the team. But, there is now a hope for a return to the team as the Asia Cup 2022 has been moved to the UAE and Indian team at the moment trying a lot to manage workload of the players.
As such, the Asia Cup 2022 might prove a time to bring those IPL 2021 stars back in the team for the Asia Cup with main players resting. Today in this article, we take a look at 3 of those IPL 2021 stars who now may he called-up to the Indian team for the Asia Cup 2022.
Ruturaj Gaikwad
Chennai Super Kings’ opening batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad had an extraordinary season and finished as the highest run scorer of the tournament. His performance played an important role as CSK won the title. Gaikwad scored 635 runs in 16 matches and also scored a century in UAE. He is right now playing as a backup opener.
Varun Chakaravarthy
Mystery spin bowler Varun Chakaravarthy had a great season while playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL 2021. He Tamil Nadu bowler took a total of 18 wickets from 16 matches and helped his team reach the final of the IPL 2021. However, Chakaravarthy has failed to replicate his form here in India and has even been dropped from the team. The Asia Cup might be a great opportunity for him to return back to his glorious place.
Venkatesh Iyer
Kolkata Knight Riders’ Venkatesh Iyer was the breakout star of the IPL 2021. The Kolkata based side struggled massively in the first half of the IPL and brought in Venkatesh Iyer to open the inning in the 2nd half. He went on to star for the franchise and scored 370 runs from 10 matches that he played, all of them in the UAE. He made his debut for India after the T20 World Cup. While he had the place booked, but a really bad IPL 2022 and a strong comeback for Hardik Pandya meant that Venkatesh is now just a fringe player. Asia Cup 2022 will be a great opportunity to get him on the UAE soil again.
